She sank to her knees, her mind not quite registering what her eyes all too clearly confirmed. She drowned in the despair that washed over her, like waves in the stormy sea. A whisper passed her lips, as barely audible as fingers brushing stone.

“Too late… too late…”

The young woman watched the life drain out of the prone figure, and felt the shadow of Death that loomed over the body, waiting, watching. She looked on helplessly as the shadow turned darker, growing off the life it took, and she wept, knowing there was nothing she could now do for her friend. Long, silent moments passed as the sun rose, throwing into sharp relief the stretched, pale features of the only person who had ever cared for her. And that person was now dead. Oh yes, they had seen to that. She was alone now; there was nothing to care for… and nothing to lose.

She stood, all exhaustion forgotten, and from the stony ruins of her home watched the gray dawn give way to day. The sun mocked her; she wished it would rain to match how she felt inside. She knew whose fault that pain was.

Him. At the center of all the suffering, he is there. This time the girl voiced her thoughts, spitting the words out, as if they were red hot.

“He. Will. Pay.”